Brandeis University’s program in Peacebuilding and the Arts in partnership with the Baker Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies at Juniata College, and Maseno University in Kisumu, Kenya, is managing a planning process for an infrastructure for the arts, culture and conflict transformation field. The 18-month planning process, which is financially supported in large part by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, will consider a range of possible organizational configurations for the field. There is a vision for university-based and cultural institutions providing stable anchors for a multi-faceted field, an ecosystem that includes artists and cultural workers, peacebuilding practitioners and organizations, researchers, policymakers, funding organizations and philanthropic professionals.

The planning process will articulate recommendations for scenarios that will meet the key needs of the field and be sustainable.